The FCC is cracking down on DJI tech that dodged the foreign drone ban

Last year, we told you about Xtra, the company that lets DJI sneak its popular cameras into the US, and Skyrover, a brand seemingly selling DJI drones in disguise. They’re just two of the many firms DJI is suspected of starting to skirt the United States’ foreign drone ban.

But it appears the FCC is finally doing something about “DJI front companies,” as watcher Konrad Iturbe dubbed them last year. Today, the FCC is fining eight of them $25,000 each — and giving them until Monday, July 20th, just 10 calendar days, to answer the FCC’s questions before the agency takes further action.

Those companies include Cogito Tech, Fixaxo Technology, Lyno Dynamics, Skyhigh Tech, Spatial Hover, SZ Knowact (the company behind Skyrover), WaveGo Tech, and Xtra Technology. All are being fined because they didn’t answer the FCC’s letters to begin with.

In order to import, sell, and market any gadget in the United States that uses radio frequencies, you need the FCC to authorize that device’s radios — but on December 22nd, the FCC added all foreign drone companies to its Covered List, which keeps the FCC from issuing authorizations to those companies because of supposed national security risks.

Last year, the FCC also gave itself the power to retroactively ban products that have already made it through its authorization process, even if they only contain components from a banned company. It doesn’t need to be a drone: if a camera contains a DJI radio transmitter, the FCC could ban it from sale, import, and marketing in the US.

This spring, the FCC began asking each of these companies whether they’re marketing radio equipment in the United States that belongs on the Covered List, and so far not a single one has replied.

The Verge, too, repeatedly asked DJI last year to confirm whether it had relationships with several of these companies, and reached out to many of the companies individually without getting answers. DJI would not confirm or deny whether Xtra and Skyrover, for example, are DJI products in disguise. When we tested the Xtra camera against the DJI one, we found it too identical to even be considered a “clone.”

The FCC is also seemingly crediting that Verge story in its investigation, which is nice to see:

Xtra is probably the most brazen of the “front companies” so far. We’ve seen the company promote influencer videos that favorably compare the Xtra Muse to the DJI Osmo Pocket 3, and it’s currently taking $20 deposits for an “Xtra Muse 2 Pro” that appears to be a DJI Pocket 4 Pro in disguise, using the catchphrase “From Pocket to Pro” among other hint-hint-wink-wink marketing.

But DJI may no longer be able to bring this camera to the United States at all. While DJI managed to get the Osmo Pocket 4 Pro through the FCC on November 26th, ahead of the ban, and while Xtra managed to get its documents through on June 17th, neither set of documents is showing up in the FCC’s search engine now.

Here’s the message that pops up when clicking on Xtra’s FCC filing:

We’ve been seeing this same message for multiple weeks.

Additionally, the FCC may be cracking down on test labs that helped get these products through the FCC certification process. The DJI Osmo Pocket 4 and 4 Pro used SGS-CTST Standards Technical Services Co, and so did WaveGo Tech. On May 11th, we’re now learning, the FCC announced its intent to disqualify SGS as an accredited test lab, because:

SGS Shenzhen is subject to 15% ownership by China Standard Science & Technology Group Company Limited, which itself is wholly-owned by the China National Institute of Standardization. The U.S. Department of Commerce, based on numerous Executive Branch sources, has determined that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is a foreign adversary.

DJI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the FCC’s actions.